On 14 April, the Constitutional Convention recommended that the Constitution be changed to allow for civil marriage between same-sex couples. As the Taoiseach will be aware, the result of the convention was decisive. I believe it represented a landmark moment for equal rights in Ireland. I ask the Taoiseach to set out for us the timetable he envisages for the consideration of this decision of the convention and when he imagines this issue might go to referendum for decision by the people.

The Constitutional Convention will have to send two reports to Government. The first is in respect of the number of issues that it discussed in the first draft. I expect the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to bring a memo to Cabinet on the first report dealing with those number of issues, probably next week. The Government will decide at that stage what response will be given to the issues that were discussed and decided upon by the convention and what we should do about them.

The second report is due by July of this year. That will include the discussions and the decision that the Constitutional Convention made in respect of gay marriage.

I stated all along that if Government responded to a report and indicated that it might decide to hold a referendum on any particular issue, it would indicate a timeline as to when that might be so. In the event, when the Government considers the immediate report, it may be possible for Government to hold another referendum this year in conjunction with those of the Seanad and the court of civil appeal.

The discussions on the second report will be probably towards the end of this session. In that event, if in any of those matters were to be agreed by Government and that a referendum should be held, it would be sometime next year, whenever Government would decide to do that.